We’ll be on the road for the next few days visiting Durham, NC.
Later!
Durham, North Carolina
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Author Archives: Cecelia Dowdy
Grilled Corn
I know I usually focus on books and writing, however, occasionally, I’ll post a recipe that I’ve tried. My hubby and I made corn on the grill last weekend and it was yummy! We used white sweet corn. For all of you summer barbeque fans, this is a recipe you might want to try!
EASY CORN ON THE GRILL
2 ears of corn for each person
1 tablespoon butter for each ear of corn
3 tablespoons crushed ice for each ear of corn
aluminum foil or foil pockets
salt, to taste
Husk corn and rinse. Heat grill to 350F.
Cut a rectangle of aluminum foil large enough to wrap each corn cob twice. Place each corn in the center of foil with the shiny side in. Add 3 tablespoons crushed ice and 1 tablespoon butter.
It’s important to wrap the corn with the aluminum foil so that the edges of the foil are crimped and sealed securely so that as the ice melts, the liquid will be retained in the foil pocket. Make an envelope with the foil and double fold the edges, then place the seams on the top.
Place the corn pockets on the hot grill and cook for 30 minutes or so, turning over half way through cooking time. (Length of cooking time will vary depending on the tenderness, variety and age of the corn – some types of corn may be done in half the time).
Skin By Ted Dekker
No, I haven’t read this book. I don’t even own this book (although I’ll probably get around to either buying it or checking it out of the library and reading it.)
I just thought it was interesting that I saw this book in the fiction/literature section in the Books A Million bookstore in Beltway Plaza in the College Park/Greenbelt area in Maryland. I thought they would have placed this book in the Christian fiction section.
The only reason I’m blogging about this is because I think it’s awesome that his book was in the regular fiction section. Somebody who wouldn’t necessarily pick up a Christian fiction title might give this one a try simply because of where they have it shelved. They might not necessarily know it’s a Christian title until they start reading it.
Until next time,
Black Christian Fiction Book Clubs
A reader named Stacy contacted me with the following question:
Cecelia I love your books…unfortunately were I live (NM) they do not carry many AA Christian Fiction books at the library.
Has anyone found a Black Christian Fiction book club? We really need one…the ones I have found don’t carry many AA authors.
Please let me know.
I had to contact Stacy to determine what she meant. The term book club appears to have a double meaning nowadays. I asked her if she meant the gatherings that people have periodically to discuss books, or if she meant the book club where you receive catalogs in the mail and order the titles of your choice.
She meant the latter.
The truth is, there are no Black Christian fiction book clubs that I know about. If they exist, then someone should respond to this post and enlighten me!
One way that you can purchase commercially-published Black Christian fiction from a book club is through Black Expressions Book Club. I’ve noticed they’ll usually have an African American Christian fiction section in their catalogs and on their website.
My first book, which was released exclusively through book clubs, was an African American Christian fiction title. It was acquired and featured in Crossings Book Club first and a month or so later it was featured in Black Expressions Book Club catalog as the feature of the month.
Crossings is another bookclub that features Christian titles only. They’ve had a number of African American Christian fiction titles over the years.
Most of the book clubs are owned by a company called Bookspan. Bookspan is a company that is a merger between Bertelsman(The Doubleday Book Club Empire) and AOL Time Warner.
About Bookspan
Unless things have changed, I believe this is still the case. I would think if an African American Christian Fiction book club were to be started, then Bookspan would do it? I’m just speculating about this because although I know the business side, somewhat, I have no idea of how somebody would go about contacting Bookspan about starting an African American Christian fiction book club. I suppose one could send an email to Bookspan via their website to make a suggestion about starting a Black Christian Fiction Book Club, but it’s hard to say how the results would pan out!
The best I’ve been able to do, as I’m sure Stacy has probably already noticed, is to start a website exclusively for Black Christian Fiction Authors. I created this website since I noticed that I had a hard time finding a collective unit on the web which displayed all African American Christian fiction authors. I hope readers find it useful.
Until next time,
Cecelia Dowdy
Redemption by Jacquelin Thomas
Hardcover
ISBN: 0451217640
Pub. Date: March 2007
From the inside cover:
Renowned televangelist Warner Brice has met the woman of his dreams — Marin Alexander, an acress blessed with both beauty and deep faith. Despite the differences in their careers, the marriage seems made in heaven, and Marin agrees to give up celebrity for motherhood. But for Marin, the provocative lure o f the spotlight and the wayward gratifications of fame are too desirable to leave behind…
Reviving her career is more difficult than Marin imagined. Seduced into a dark Hollywood underworld of drugs and illicit sex, she falls into a downward spiral — one that threatens not just her family, but her life as well. And when the limelight proves as elusive as the pleasures it promises, Marin discovers that her only hope is her last: a prayer for redemption before all she really loves is lost forever.
I’ve noticed Jacquelin Thomas loves writing about the Hollywood life. I’ve read several other stories by this author in which she has a Hollywood star as the main character.
This book portrayed a lot of obstacles for Warner and Marin to overcome. First, he was a preacher of a large, well-known church. Marin is a famous actress. It’s nearly impossible to mix the two, which is why the couple had to overcome so many problems just to get married and stay married. Warner’s sister never really accepts Marin into the family, and Marin struggles with her self-image due to her mother’s ridiculing comments.
I loved this story, however, the ending really surprised me. I wasn’t expecting the book to end the way that it did. I’d highly recommend this book if you want to read a story about how we need to really keep centered on our faith in order to overcome all obstacles in a romantic (or any) relationship. It takes a man of great faith (like Warner) to take Marin back after all that she’d done to hurt him.
Here are a few other books by Jaquelin Thomas that I’ve read and enjoyed:
Christian Fantasy
In light of the next (and I believe final?) Harry Potter book hitting the stores tomorrow, I thought I’d post this link with an article from the Washington Post about Christian Fantasy.
Also, I’ll remind you that I blogged a bit about Harry Potter versus Left Behind a few months ago. You’ll find my post here:
Harry Potter Versus Left Behind
Also, I’m trying to finish up another manuscript, so my blog posts won’t be frequent over the next few days.
Cecelia Dowdy
www.ceceliadowdy.com
Bethany House Giving Away Free Books
Bethany House has encouraged all to pass on the information below! If you fill out the survey, you could win a free novel!
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We at Bethany House Publishers appreciate our readers opinions about the books we publish. Occasionally, we seek your input about upcoming products.
Currently, we are conducting a survey about the cover image for an upcoming novel. For your time, we are offering a giveaway in conjunction with this survey. You will be able to choose from ten recent Bethany House novels, and there will be ten winners. Winners will be notified within two weeks.
Thank you for your participation, and feel free to forward this email on to your friends or link the survey on your website. The survey will be available through Friday, July 20.
And The Winner Is….
Romance Writers of America (RWA) presented their annual RITA awards last night. The winner of the Inspirational category is:
Revealed
by Tamera Alexander
Paperback
ISBN: 0764201093
Pub. Date: November 2006
Series: Fountain Creek Chronicles Series, #2
Many congrats to Tamera!
Cecelia Dowdy
www.ceceliadowdy.com
Blair Underwood Penning Novels???
Okay, I’m going to go off the beaten path today and blog about a secular novel. I don’t read many secular books nowadays since there are so many Christian novels out there and I love reading them so much!
Well, it turns out that actor Blair Underwood has collaberated with some other novelists and has a book out that was released last June. I was shocked. I know that there are a few other Hollywood personalities out there who have penned novels and children’s books, however, I didn’t know Blair had one out. I have to wonder if the book is well written? I’m not sure I can find time in my hectic schedule to read it.
Cecelia Dowdy
www.ceceliadowdy.com
Do You Ever Wonder….
Do authors write novels to get over their issues? This thought popped into my head tonight as I was getting my toddler son ready for bed. I’m wondering if authors have problems and issues that they’ve been struggling with, and to deal with these problems/issues, they write novels, letting their characters resolve their problems in the story.
Just a thought….
Cecelia Dowdy
www.ceceliadowdy.com